Trabzonspor coach Thomas Reis considers resting Salah against Hearts amid fixture congestion

Trabzonspor coach Thomas Reis is considering resting Mohamed Salah and several other key players for Thursday’s Europa League clash against Hearts as the Turkish side battles fixture congestion.

Trabzonspor will host the Scottish side in the second round of the 2026/27 Europa League league phase, aiming to secure another victory and strengthen their chances of progressing to the next round.

The Turkish outfit made an impressive start to their European campaign, recording a 4-2 victory over Kubus in their opening fixture, with Salah playing a decisive role by scoring a goal and providing an assist.

However, the demanding schedule has left Reis contemplating changes to his starting lineup, with Trabzonspor facing a quick turnaround after Monday’s encounter against Besiktas.

Speaking at his pre-match press conference, the German tactician admitted that the frequency of matches was beginning to affect his players, although he remained hopeful they would recover in time for Thursday’s encounter.

“We are playing a very large number of matches in a short time, and this really affects us. We played a match on Monday against Besiktas, and now we will play a match tomorrow. We started the conference league well and we are seeking to collect the three points in this match as well. It is true that some players feel tired today, but they will be in better shape tomorrow,” Reis said, as quoted by Turkish newspaper Fanatik.

The Trabzonspor boss further revealed that injuries and the unavailability of some squad members could influence his selection, opening the door for changes against Hearts.

“We have some injured players and others who are unavailable or out of the squad, so tomorrow we might play a different lineup than the one we played against Besiktas. All the players have a great desire to participate and perform at their best.

“We are in a positive mood and we will see the lineup we will field against Hearts. We hope to reach six points, and I think that collecting 10 or 11 points will be enough to qualify for the next round and continue our journey in the tournament, so winning tomorrow is very important,” he added.

Salah’s potential absence would be a significant talking point ahead of the match, particularly after his impressive contribution to Trabzonspor’s opening European victory.

The Egyptian forward has quickly established himself as an influential figure in the team, but Reis must now balance the need to maintain their winning momentum with the importance of managing his players’ workload.

Trabzonspor will hope to take advantage of their home fixture against Hearts and collect another three points, even if the coach decides to rotate his squad to keep his key players fresh for the challenges ahead.